To begin with, I will define what I mean by price points and the simple logic behind categorising brands(Brand Category) under three main price points. Price points are the suggested retail prices placed on merchandises/products by the fashion brand. These prices allow the demand for the certain product to stay high so the more the products produced or available to the market, the less its price. Now to jump straight into it, my three different price points which will also been used throughout the blog are Value, Premium and Luxury.
Value Brands
These are brands made for the mass market and are nationally advertised to attract as many customers as possible. They usually design their clothing based on the new fashion trends and styles but at a knock off price from what the designer/luxury brands would offer. These brands have a retail price of around £200-£300 and below for their most expensive apparel selections.
Pros
I am a good fan of such brands as you spend little to nothing on some important additions like accessories and tops. They allow you keep up with the trends and encourage mass buying of products like tops and more. It is also an important price point to consider when building your wardrobe as it doesn’t rinse out your pockets and allows you acquire bargains. They are extremely good with creativity and experimenting I must say.
Cons
One thing I grew to realise after owning a few goods from this price point. They tend to wear and tear early due to the material/fabric’s quality and finishing. As the saying goes, you get what you pay for and this applies to clothes as well. They are cheap which means that most times, the materials used in production are of low to average quality. There are possibilities of short life spans to the products from this category. Shoes soles wear out and materials/fabric give way.
YJA’s view
I would suggest you think carefully when shopping with value brands if you can comfortably afford higher. They can be seen as bargains at first instance but as a man of investments, I’ll rather have a suit or a pair of shoes that lasts many years than having to restock on those “valuable” shoes that did not last long. But you must not avoid such bargains on accessories, t-shirts, shirts, and more. It’s a definite addition to your wardrobe but just be very cautious with the fabric being used and finishing when buying stuff.
Premium Brands
I believe these are the most comfortable brands and much-needed in every mans wardrobe. They are the bridge between luxury and value and give you assurance. They pay more detail into their fabric and the final delivery and on a good note, they still deliver stylish and trendy clothing. They don’t usually go for anything more than £600 for their most expensive products and that’s considering their suits.
Pros
The fabrics used in production are better and they are generally at an affordable price. They also give you that classy and elegant look and enhance on detail with production. Another point which I consider very important is that they tend to last for long and don’t easily give way. This means you can actually begin “investing” in such brands as they can tend to be seen as “smart shopping”.
Cons
They sometimes sell overpriced product, especially when its an area they tend not to specialise in. You sometimes pick out bad finishing on goods and some of their clothing are very similar to that of value brands.
YJA’s view Personally my best option when building my wardrobe or reinventing it. You get the option to buy a few goods within your budget and in most cases , you are assured of it lasting for a considerable amount of time and not needed to completely replace a certain top or trousers etc. Be aware of price though as you can’t really shop in quantity unless you have a very comfortable wallet.
Luxury Brands
I some times refer to this as the identity brands. You tend to see most luxury designers now a-days bearing the names of the creators. This say immediately that “extreme details to achieving the closest thing to perfection” are put into these products, I mean no one wants to tarnish their reputation. The fabric, trim, fit , finishing, details are superior to the other brand types as they are either bespoke or made to fit your type in the best possible way and they mostly go from £700 upwards for their most expensive goods.
Pros
You get great quality and fit with these brands. Loads of support offered and on site alterations to give you the perfect fit for your body shape. As most of these brands also specialise only in certain clothing categories, you are sure of a variety of products from the newest trends and fabrics giving you that smart and elegant look every woman dreams of. Such products do a lot of justice to your personal brand/image and are mostly very comfortable on the body due to the detail during production as most goods aren’t mass made by machines or at clothing factories.
Cons
Costly for an average person and difficult to buy in quantity as these products are assembled by the best designers using the best fabrics. Some clothing types also sell for absurd prices as most price ranges are based on brands reputation. As they are luxury goods, demand is way more than supply so there is not much time to think things over as they would most likely get sold out.
Conclusion
Through my wardrobe shuffling and restocking, I have come to realise that all three brand categories are extremely important for a successful and timeless wardrobe. We all can’t afford to stock up with luxury items from clothes to accessories. On the other hand,, it’s not a smart decision to stock your wardrobe with only value brands. So my philosophy is to set aside your clear budget and necessities, shop smart on the important pieces that you wear frequently which really need to last long and maintain their quality. So items that need good tailoring and fitting, strong fabrics and materials (shoes, jackets, blazers, trousers, outwear), you should consider mostly luxury and premium; it will all be worth it when they are still intact 6 years + from now. You can now afford to save on the rest of your purchases but still be ready to compromise with fit and quality but then that’s why we all have our personal tailors. They also tend to give you comparable style/quality to most luxury brands for fraction of the costs.
Your Favourite Stylist,
Yinka Jermaine
